


Changeling

by BelleRaev



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Dark Stiles, F/M, M/M, Minor Allison Argent/Isaac Lahey, Possible trigger for mental instability
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-10
Updated: 2014-08-10
Packaged: 2018-02-12 14:05:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2112771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BelleRaev/pseuds/BelleRaev
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles is a figment of Isaac's imagination... until he isn't.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Changeling

**Author's Note:**

> Based on [this](http://thatjordanparrish.tumblr.com/post/89609657981/teen-wolf-au-stiles-is-a-figment-of-isaacs), [this](http://thatjordanparrish.tumblr.com/post/89809486651/stisaac-au-stiles-is-a-figment-of-isaacs), and [this](http://thatjordanparrish.tumblr.com/post/90168722896/stisaac-au-stiles-is-a-figment-of-isaacs)

"I can't do this anymore" 

The words echo in the silence of the room and he forces his gaze downwards to the rich mahogany of the floor so that he doesn't lose his bearing, 

"Do what?" The other boy answers from the end of the bed as he continues flipping through the textbook. 

_Not a boy, not anything, he isn't there, he doesn't exist._

Isaac curls his fingers into a fist and takes a breath as he repeats the words like a mantra, it is his stronghold. The only thing that will be able to help him regain his sanity. He needs to believe it. It is a fact. He is convinced.

"This, you." his words doesn't match his conviction and he refuses to look anywhere as the room increases in tension. He feels the sudden pair of eyes on him and he has to resist cringing or turning his head. 

_There's no one there, he doesn't exist._

The hard cover book smacks against the desk and it sounds like an anvil being dropped, a weight lifts off the bed and the end springs - Isaac shuts his eyes against it. 

_It's all just me. It's all me._

"What are you talking about?" The voice definitely isn't his, but Mrs. McCall said that's how auditory hallucinations work. He made up a voice that sounds pleasing to go with the person that he created. It doesn't make much sense to him but it is a fact and he has to believe it. 

"I can't be your boyfriend anymore, or see you anymore. You have to go" he practiced the words in his mind a hundred times, his mind which created his person - shouldn't he have known already what he was going to say? He can't think about that. He needs to focus on what he knows for sure, he can't allow his thoughts to wander, his mind can't be trusted. 

"You're breaking up with me?" He sounds amused, and not in a kind way. Isaac can picture the smirk on his lips, the devilish tint in his eyes, and the arch of the eyebrow that displayed his disbelief. The look that said you're a complete waste of time but I'm entertained. He wore that look at lot, often when he was being cruel. Never towards Isaac but he's witnessed it enough to know the inflection of tone that went with it. Except he hasn't. He's never seen it, there was nothing to see. There is nothing. 

_He doesn't exist, he doesn't exist._

"Yes." He answers and his voice doesn't crack to match the fissures occurring all throughout his body. He's grateful for it though it makes him question what he's been told is true - what he knows is true. It shouldn't hurt, it doesn't hurt. Except it does. Like hell. He feels it in his bones though he shouldn't. Though he knows that he doesn't. It feels real. Mrs. McCall told him about psychosomatic injuries but that's supposed to be physical. How can he break his own heart. 

His thoughts are wandering, trailing after the pain and trying to explain it. He has to stop. He needs to stop. He's stopping. 

"Why?" He's not sure how long the silence lasted before the other spoke but he wished he hadn't. He had been hoping that ridding himself of the 'delusion' would've been that easy. 

"Why Isaac?" He asked again, voice rising and brimming with anger. It didn't take much to make him mad. His emotions were volatile at best of times and frightening at others but his default seemed to be anger. Isaac never minded much because it was a sharp contrast to his own apathy about most things, plus it was never directed at him personally. Now that it was he felt that he should move with caution except that really didn't matter did it. 

_He can't do anything, he's not real. He doesn't exist._

"Isaac!" He calls out loud and sharp when no answer is given. Despite his mantra he still fears what would happen if he dared spoke the words aloud. He needs a moment to block out the pain shooting through him before he can finish this. 

"Is it Allison?" His voice drops lower, a false sense of calm masking the fury underneath and Isaac pushes the sound of footsteps away as the other boy approaches him. 

_He doesn't exist, we have bad floorboards,_

"It is isn't it? I knew it, all the time that she spends trying to worm her way into your life and then you kissed her!" He's always been very animated. Isaac doesn't have to actually see him to know that his arms are making all variety of jerky frustrated motions or that his fingers are flexing and extending wildly like he was trying to grasp something or that his feet were shuffling back and forth to expel the rage that wouldn't let him stand still. He was always so expressive, raw and unrestrained. It was one of the things that Isaac found so alluring about him. Except. That wasn't real. He isn't real. 

"God, I should've..." he trails off, teeth grinding down and jaw clenching and Isaac blocks out the harsh angered breathing that he knows isn't really there. 

"It's not Allison" he answers finally because he's afraid of what is going on in the other's head.

_Nothing, he's thinking of nothing because he doesn't exist._

"Then what?" He snaps and rounds forward, his tennis shoes directly within Isaac's line of sight. 

"I just can't be with you anymore. I'm sorry" he wipes his palms on the rough denim of the pants to have something draw his attention away from the chucks that threatened what he knows to be fact. 

"Bullshit!" He spits the word out with such venom that Isaac thinks it's impossible for his imagination to be this vivid. 

_It's all just me. He doesn't exist._

"Tell me the truth." The boy who shouldn't be there - isn't there, moves further into his personal space. He feels the warmth that shouldn't be possible coming off of him and then a weight settles onto his shoulder. 

He shoots up quickly, nearly colliding with the solid body that he shouldn't be able to feel in his haste to get away. 

"You're not real." There. It's done. He's done it. No take backs. 

"You're not real Stiles, and I can't be with you." He's breathing heavier then he expected and he watches a multitude of emotions crosses the imaginary boy's features - hurt, shock, anger, disappointment and then it settles on something blank. 

"You don't mean that." He says surprisingly soft as he reaches forward with nimble fingers curling to grasp at his arm. Isaac moves and walks to the opposite side of the room before they could make contact. Even if he knows it isn't real, he couldn't handle Stiles' skin against his right now. 

"I mean it. You're something I made up and it's time I got over it" he says the words like he's practiced and it takes every bit of effort that he has to hold the other's dark stare and not pull away under their scrutiny. 

"If your brother did something to you..." "Camden didn't do anything" he cuts the boy off with a yell as frustration starts to set in. He doesn't want to bring his brother into this. He doesn't want to blame him for this. This is his delusion. This is purely his fault. Camden was just trying to help. 

"You're. Not. Real!" His hands curls into fists now as everything he shouldn't be feeling threatens to overwhelm him. "Leave me alone Stiles. Go. Now." 

He feels the moisture of his eyes and wishes that he didn't wish he knew what the other was thinking behind the blank face that he wore. 

"You're going to regret saying that" Stiles' voice betrays him as it cracks and Isaac nearly apologizes but then he flickered. It was like a trick of the light, shadows shimmering for a second, and then another and then he vanishes completely, 

Isaac's stomach drops as he's left staring at the spot where the Stiles stood seconds ago but all there was to see was his door. 

_He's gone. He's gone, he's gone._

"Stiles?" The whisper is broken through his sobs as the tears fall freely now that he doesn't have a witness. 

"Stiles!" He tries louder unsure of what it is he was expecting. The other had a habit of appearing and disappearing suddenly but he's never seen him do that before and he didn't know what it meant. 

_He's gone. He wasn't real. He doesn't exist._

It feels real, and he's already regretting saying otherwise. 

 

*

He wakes up alone. There's no bare chest pressing against his back to steal his warmth or long cold fingers drumming at his abdomen and trying to worm their way into his sweats. It's just him, his thoughts and the morning light. His day gets worse from there. 

 

*

"Did you stay up all night?" 

He paused in between shoving his algebra book into his locker to turn in direction of the voice that spoke to him. 

"What?" His head was sluggish and though he heard her loud and clear he wasn't quite processing like he was used to. 

Her lips tightened in a half smile and Isaac tried to focus on her face so that he could give her the attention that she deserved. He was always more than surprised that someone of Allison's status would interact with him, despite the fact that she's done so everyday since their mutually shared detention. 

"You look like you haven't slept in a month" she had her books clutched to her chest and shifted her weight to lean against the lockers. She had an insane amount of patience for Isaac's generally douche like behavior. Stiles said it was because... Stiles said nothing because he was never there. 

The thought hit him like a brick to the chest, just as it has been every time his thoughts wandered to the fact that the neurotic teen has yet to show up by his side. 

"Stiles and I broke up" he tells her because he needs to tell someone. Allison has been the only person to believe that the other boy was real. She's never seen him but she says she believes him and that's enough for him. Even though now his thoughts are in completely disarray and he doesn't know what he believes anymore, he feels like he needs to tell someone who won't belittle his pain. 

"Oh." She straightens and the shock and confusion of her face look genuine. He's never had a reason to believe that the brunette was just playing with him. She had this air about her that said she didn't have the time for anything that ridiculous. Isaac liked that about her. Her confidence. It was a dangerous thought around Stiles because... Because nothing. He wasn't real. 

"Why?" She asked with eyes narrowing like she was truly puzzled. He appreciated it but didn't know what to say to her. He was afraid of what she would say back. Validation that he's better for ridding himself of his 'delusion' or anger for being weak and letting everyone else tell him what he should believe in. Either one would worsen his day. 

"Jealousy." He lies and turn back to his locker to pack his books and retrieve the ones he needs for next period. "He got jealous a lot. He's threatened to kill you a couple of times." It was more than couple. Out of everyone in Beacon Hills Stiles hated Allison the most. Ever since she kissed him weeks ago. He never realized how possessive Stiles was before than. Isaac hadn't cared because... He loved him. He loved a figment of his imagination. 

He slams the locker harder than he has to as the hole in his chest widens a little more. With his backpack slung over a shoulder, he turns to look back at Allison. 

She had a look that said she didn't believe him. Her eyes were soft, pitying. She knew the truth but it didn't look like she was going to mention it. 

"I'll watch my back." She says finally when the silence between them begins to stretch. He can't tell if she's being serious or not but he's suddenly had enough of this school day. 

Isaac nods. He's not sure what for. He's never been an awkward type of guy, he was too blunt for that but he felt awkward in this situation and needed to escape. 

"I'm gonna get out of here, you wanna come?" He doesn't know why he asks but he does and the sad look that she's giving him doesn't change but she accepts his invitation all the same. He regrets it the second that she does. 

 

*

He kissed her first. It was a huge mistake. 

He thought perhaps he could distract himself from thoughts of the boy that didn't exist but instead he ended up comparing all the ways that they were different and similar. 

The subtle confidence that she poured into it was nothing like the aggressive way Stiles kissed, always demanding and hurried like he was afraid of being pulled away too soon. The sharpness of her jaw felt familiar in a bittersweet sort of way, like maybe if he pretended hard enough when he opened his eyes the person in his arms would change. 

He was afraid to take the risk, afraid that he was wrong and afraid that he was right when he told himself that the boy wasn't real. So instead he buries his fingers in her hair, reaffirms the fact that it was Allison he was with and grips her waist for leverage. 

He shouldn't have, because then it made what he was doing all too real. The subtle curve of her hip beneath her thin skirt was very much girl not boy and then a wave of guilt crashed into him. 

He had to pull away suddenly, scooted back against the car seat and hit his head against the headrest. It was impossible to tell if he felt worse for thinking that would help or for feeling like he cheated on Stiles. There was also the fleeting thought of whether or not he was leading Allison on, but he wasn't sure what she wanted with him in the first place so it wasn't as devastating as the others. 

"Sorry." He managed finally, "that was a bad idea" he continues and exhales loudly in mental exhaustion. 

He expected the brunette to have some witty remark but she said nothing and entangled their hands together with a gentle squeeze. 

It had a grounding effect, so Isaac squeezed back and worked on clearing his mind of all things Stiles Stilinski. 

 

*

He was hoping that he could make his way from the front door to his room unnoticed but as soon as he stepped into the foyer his brother was there - arms crossed against his chest and looking much too like their father than Isaac was comfortable with. 

"What?" He would rather not talk to him at all but he might as well get it over with now so the older man doesn't go beating down his door later. 

"Coach called, he said you missed practice." Isaac had already started heading towards the steps with Camden hot on his tail like a shadow. He didn't have the patience for this right now or anytime within the next century. 

"Good for coach." He made no attempt to hide his annoyance and was only short of rolling his eyes. 

"Where were you?" Camden gripped his forearm with a lot more strength than he was used to, it caused him to actually stop on the staircase so he doesn't get wrenched back and injured. He considered his options - he hasn't won a fight against his brother since he was nine and he kicked him in the face when the other boy lost his footing, he probably wouldn't win this one given the fact that the older male was army trained and certified. 

"With Allison." He took the sensible route because he doesn't have the energy for anything else, "I must've forgot to ask your permission" Though it didn't mean he couldn't still be a little shit. 

His brother's brows furrowed, his eyes narrowed and he lowered his voice to barely a whisper when he spoke, "Did you do it?" His tone was deadly serious and it was something Isaac was getting accustomed to since Camden came back. 

He was hit by what felt like an irrational fury. He was doing well in avoiding thinking of "it" for the past few hours, most of it had to do with redirecting his full attention to Allison but now of course his brother had to ruin the bitter peace he managed to find. 

He yanked his arm forward and nearly dislocated his shoulder against his brother's brute force. 

"Let go of me." He was pissed. That much was obvious. Camden didn't seem to care and his grip turned bruising, "answer my question." He kept his voice low and stepped up a stair to decrease the space between them. He wasn't going to drop it. The "it" being making sure Isaac rid himself of the delusion of a Stiles Stilinski who loved him despite his flaws and whom he would do anything for. 

"Yes." He managed out between clenched teeth to avoid jumping the impulse to tackle his brother to the ground and pummel his face in. 

The grip on his arm lessened and the older man's face soften to a look of relief. "Good. That's good Isaac." He sounded thankful, like a weight was lifted and Isaac felt like he was about to be drowned in all of the things that he was feeling. "Let go of me Cam." He spoke softer, he felt defeated and it must've reflected in his face because the other did just that. 

 

*

He ends up collapsing on the bed like dead weight with his eyes shut tight to hold back the moisture that gathered and threatening to spill over all of the things that he didn't know how to handle - Loss over Stiles, guilt over Allison, anger with himself, and then there was Cam. 

He hated Cam. He wished that he could say that he didn't and he was trying very hard not to but yea, he hated Cam. 

Since coming back from war he's been on an overprotective big brother shtick. He's inserted his way into every facet of Isaac's life, found out about Stiles then it increased ten-fold. He told him that the boy he loved wasn't real, that his parents were thinking of committing him to Eichen house, that he needed to start acting normal and took him to Melissa McMcall for therapy.

Isaac never cared that people thought he was crazy because he didn't give a damn about any of them but Camden was his brother and he expected him to be on his side. The fact that he wasn't was a hard blow. It made him question whether Stiles really was existed or not and now, well now he just didn't fucking know. 

So yes, he hated Cam and kind of wish he'd stayed wherever the hell he came from a month ago. 

*

He wakes up alone and cold to his phone alarm sounding. His day gets worse from there.

**Author's Note:**

> Tags will be added when they become relevant. This is unbeta'ed so if there's mistakes kindly point them out to me and I shall fix. :)


End file.
